JP2004023292A - Line connection control apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a line connection control apparatus for dividing line connection from a plurality of portable information terminals into arbitrary combinations. <P>SOLUTION: A conference room application 221 comprises three conference rooms. Users of the portable information terminals connected to respective conference rooms are allowed to have concurrent telephone conversations. In dialing from a commander, "from the portable information terminal of a registered member" is selected for calling, thus connecting the member to a specified conference room. In an arrival signal from the member, the member can make connection to the specified conference room for entry by allowing the commander to specify the conference room. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a line connection control device that manages line connections of a plurality of portable information terminals.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, when multiple people in different places want to hold a conference, each party who wants to make a conference calls a predetermined number, connects to a voice mixing device at the line connection destination, and mixes the voice there to start the conference. There are things to do.
By using this sound mixing device, each person in a different place can hear the voice of all other connected persons, and all the others can hear their own voice. .
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the conventional audio mixing device, the number of people who can connect to the line, the number of telephones, and the like are limited, and the use as an audio conference is limited. Also, since the voices of all persons connected to the sound mixing device can be heard from each other, it is difficult to hear or understand when all the persons are talking. In addition, in a case where a voice conference using a voice mixing device is performed, in one voice conference, not only talk with all the members, but also want to consult only with a few individuals participating in the conference or with a predetermined person. Such cases also occur. In such a case, in the conventional voice mixing apparatus, all the connected persons are connected as one voice conference, so that unrelated persons have to listen.
[0004]
Therefore, there is an increasing demand for an audio conference system that can be arbitrarily changed as needed, such as dividing connected persons into a predetermined group, or grouping all persons into one conference.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a line connection control device that can divide line connections from a plurality of portable information terminals into an arbitrary combination.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The invention according to claim 1 is a line connection control device that manages a line connection from a plurality of portable information terminals to a predetermined number, wherein the connection accepting unit accepts a line connection request from the plurality of portable information terminals; Combination selection means for selecting a combination of line connections of a plurality of portable information terminals, and connection means for performing line connection of the plurality of portable information terminals received by the connection reception means based on the combination selected by the combination selection means The above object is achieved by providing:
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the line connection device according to the first aspect, the combination is selected by the combination selecting means, and the combination can be arbitrarily set.
[0006]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the line connection control device of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
In the present embodiment, as an example, a case will be described in which all fire brigade members (eight) using a portable information terminal talk with a captain (hereinafter, referred to as a commander) via a line connection control device.
[0007]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a line connection system using the line connection control device of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the line connection system 100 includes portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,... Possessed by each member, and a plurality of CSs (hereinafter, referred to as repeaters) 1a, 1b, 1c,. , A line controller 10, and a commander-side PC terminal 20 having a conference room application.
The portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,... Are described here as a PHS (Personal Handy-Phone System: registered trademark) having an extension mode as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this.
For example, an information processing terminal having a communication function such as a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) or a mobile phone may be used.
[0008]
The repeaters 1a, 1b, 1c,... Are mounted on a fire truck, and are arranged at predetermined locations on a fire site by fire fighters. Calls from the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,... Are sent to the commander PC via the repeaters 1a, 1b, 1c,. The terminal 20 receives a call.
The line controller 10 once receives a call, which is a line connection request, via the repeaters 1a, 1b, 1c,..., And selects one of the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,. Recognize whether the call is from an information terminal. The line controller 10 stores in advance the number information of the portable information terminal, the number of the repeater, and the like.
[0009]
In the present embodiment, PC terminal 20 is described as a personal computer as an example, but is not limited thereto. Further, the PC terminal 20 is provided with a line connection control board functioning as a line connection control device, and according to a conference room application described in a predetermined program language, the line of the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,. The connection is controlled.
[0010]
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of the PC terminal 20 including the line connection control board.
The PC terminal 20 includes a control unit (not shown), and an image display unit 21 such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) through a bus line such as a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect Bus) and a data bus. , A storage unit 22, a line connection control unit (line connection control board) 23, a communication control unit 24, and other devices not shown.
[0011]
The control unit of the PC terminal 20 controls each unit of the PC terminal 20 according to various programs (application software) and records a CPU (central processing unit) that functions as a line connection control device, a program executed when the computer is started, and the like. ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory) for storing programs and data for the CPU to perform various controls.
[0012]
The storage unit 22 stores a conference room application 221, a telephone directory application 222, an OS (Operating System) 223, and other applications, which are various programs for causing the PC terminal 20 to function as a line connection device.
The conference room application 221 sets each unit of the line connection control unit 23 to a connection receiving unit that receives a line connection request transmitted from the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,. Based on the selected combination, the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,... Received by the connection receiving means are caused to function as connection means for performing line connection.
[0013]
Here, each function of the conference room application 221 will be described.
The conference room application 221 has a function of connecting the member's portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,... Arriving at the PC terminal 20 to a designated conference room according to a manual mode or an automatic mode. It has a function of specifying a room and connecting to the specified conference room when the called party answers.
In the present embodiment, the conference room connected by the conference room application 221 is described as being composed of three conference rooms, namely, the conference room A, the conference room B, and the individual conference room, but is not limited thereto. is not. For example, when the captain uses the PC terminal 20 as the line connection control device, the number of conference rooms may be arbitrarily set.
[0014]
The line connection pattern to each conference room by the conference room application 221 is a nine-party call, a seven-party call and a one-to-one call, a six-party call and a three-party call when using up to nine calls connected to one conference room. , Five-party call, four-party call, four-party call, three-party call, one-to-one call, three sets of three-party call, and other combinations from two calls with one-to-one connection to a maximum of nine calls be able to. As described above, in each of the conference rooms (the conference room A, the conference room B, and the individual conference room) controlled by the conference room application 221, the form information terminals connected to the conference room and the instructor communicate simultaneously. It is possible.
[0015]
When the conference room application 221 receives a line connection request from the member's portable information terminal 2a, 2b, 2c,..., The image display unit 21 of the PC terminal 20 displays the image of the member, the member name, CS It also has a function of displaying position information and the like. For example, on the MAP display screen displayed on the image display unit 21 by the conference room application 221, the commander can recognize the position of the connected portable information terminal from the CS position information.
Further, the conference room application 221 controls the line connection control unit 23 in accordance with the designation on the image display unit 21 by the commander. The designation on the image display unit 21 by the commander can be performed by a touch panel, a mouse, or the like.
[0016]
Further, based on the display on the image display unit 21, when the commander mouse-clicks a predetermined portion of the screen based on the display on the image display unit 21, the conference room application 221 responds to the processing request by the mouse click and the members connected to each conference room. Can switch the call status. For example, when the captain specifies broadcast transmission on a predetermined screen of the image display unit 21, the conference room application 221 instantaneously switches all the connected portable information terminals to the same conference room. ing.
[0017]
Further, when the instructor drags and drops an image of a member in a predetermined conference room displayed on the image display unit 21 with a touch panel or a mouse, the conference room application 221 transfers the member to another conference room. It is designed to move.
The conference room application 221 displays the status of members connected to each conference room on the image display unit 21 as a status monitor. Thus, the commander can monitor the line connection and manage the connection and disconnection.
[0018]
Upon receiving the line connection request, the telephone application 222 extracts information of each member registered in advance in accordance with the telephone number that transmitted the line connection request, and transfers the information to the conference room application 221. .
The OS 223 stores other programs such as a program for using the PC terminal 20 for maintenance.
[0019]
The line connection control unit 23 includes OD trunk boards 231 and 232, a mixing unit 233, and an I / O (Input / Output) board 234. The OD trunk (Out Band Dialing Trunk) boards 231 and 232 function as connection accepting means, and are trunk lines for a 4W (Wires) line (transmission / call).
The OD trunk boards 231 and 232 accept the call as a line connection request when a member calls the commander from the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,.
[0020]
In addition, when the dispatcher wants to transmit to the personal information terminal of each member via the line connection control device, the OD trunk boards 231 and 232 control the SS and SR lines in accordance with the conference room application 221 to provide the personal information terminal with the personal information terminal. A call is made to the user. In this case, a wink start method is used for calling.
The wink start method is a connection method in which an operation (wink signal) of changing the SR line from 1 to 0 and returning to 1 after a certain time has elapsed, instead of checking with a dial tone or timing, is used as a connection confirmation signal.
[0021]
In the present embodiment, a wink start method is used as the transmission sequence, but the transmission sequence is not limited to this.
The selection signal can be transmitted and received by alternately changing the SS and SR lines between 0 and 1 from the OD trunk boards 231 and 232. The transmission and reception method of the selection signal is not only a wink start method but also a second dial tone method. (Start by confirming the dial tone) and the second dial tone method (timing start).
[0022]
The I / O board 234 is connected to the mixing unit 233 via a dedicated cable. The I / O board 233 functions as a combination selection unit in accordance with the conference room application 221, and controls the mixing unit 233.
The control method by the I / O board 234 is such that a DLL attached to the I / O board is used, and the conference room application 221 controls the SS signal and the SR signal of the DLL and the control function of the analog SW. Has become.
[0023]
The mixing unit 233 functions as a connection unit that connects a predetermined portable information terminal to a line under the control of the I / O board 234. With this mixing unit 233
By using the transfer, the mixing unit 233 can perform line connection so that eight portable information terminals and one instructor can communicate with each other at a maximum of nine people. The line connection control of the mixing unit 233 is performed by switching by the I / O board 234 according to the conference room application 221.
[0024]
The mixing unit 233 is connected to the speaker 26 used by the commander via an external monitor terminal. The mixing unit 233 switches on / off the audio output from the speaker 26. Switching of the audio output by the mixing unit 233 is controlled by the conference room application 221 according to a command (setting) specified on the screen displayed on the image display unit 21.
The mixing unit 233 is connected to the headset 27 via a headset connection terminal. The mixing unit 233 can output a headphone input and a sound output to a headset phone, similarly to the speaker 26.
[0025]
Next, the operation of the line connection control device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. This will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a line connection processing procedure by the PC terminal 20. Here, a case where member 3000 sends a message to the commander will be described. It is also assumed that the instructor of the PC terminal 20 starts up the conference room application 221 and a line connection status screen as shown in FIG.
[0026]
When the member 3000 makes a call from the portable information terminal 2a to the PC terminal 20, the control unit of the PC terminal 20 detects the incoming call (step S300) and recognizes it as a line connection request. At this time, based on the conference room application 221, the control unit determines that a member 3000 is receiving a call on the first line as shown in FIG. (Member 3000). The control unit changes the display of the line connection status box 43 from “standby” (see FIG. 4A) to “incoming”.
At the same time as changing the display of the line connection status screen, the control unit searches for the member 3000 as the caller based on the “call log file” and the “call log search number” created by the conference room application 221, The caller's name, photo, and location information are extracted from the “registered member file”.
[0027]
After the extraction, the control unit of the PC terminal 20 displays an incoming call screen as shown in FIG. 5 using the image display function of the conference room application 221 (step S300).
As shown in FIG. 5, on the incoming call screen, an image 51 of the member 3000 registered in advance, a name 52 of the member 3000, CS position information 53 indicating the Isesaki district, and the like are displayed. A response button 54 is also displayed on the incoming call screen, and the commander can respond to the incoming member 3000 by selecting the response button 54 with a pointing device such as a mouse. Has become.
[0028]
Here, when the commander selects the response button 54 on the incoming call screen, the control unit determines which of the manual response mode and the automatic response mode is selected and set.
When the manual response button 41 is selected as in the connection status screen of FIG. 4 (step S302; Y), the control unit prompts the commander to select a conference room to which the member 3000 is connected (step S303). ).
The selection of the conference room means that the conference room is selected by checking any one of the conference room A, the conference room B, and the individual conference room in the conference room selection box 44. FIG. 4A shows a case where the individual conference room is selected.
When the instructor selects to connect members 3000 individually to conference rooms, the control unit connects the line of portable information terminal 2a of member 3000 individually to conference rooms (step 304). At this time, based on the conference room application 221, the control unit changes the display of the line connection state box 43 from "receiving" (see FIG. 4 (b)) to "active", as shown in FIG. Change.
After the end of the call, when the commander selects the line disconnection button 48, the control unit disconnects the line connection of the member 3000 (step S305).
[0029]
If the incoming call screen moves to the back because the line connection status screen is displayed on the image display unit 21, the control unit displays the incoming call screen as shown in FIG. A middle button 45 is displayed. The instructor can display the incoming call screen again by selecting the incoming call button 45.
During a call, the commander checks and selects another conference room A or B in the conference room selection box 44 on the line connection status screen, thereby moving the member 3000 to another conference room. Can be done.
Further, for example, when all eight lines are checked in the same conference room, all of the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,... Connected to the PC terminal 20 are connected to one conference room. become.
[0030]
Further, the instructor can display the conference room monitor screen and the MAP display screen on the image display unit 21 by selecting the conference room tag 46 and the MAP tag 47 on the line connection status screen. The commander can grasp the positions of the members on the MAP display screen.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a conference room monitor screen. On the conference room monitor screen, images (photographs), names, CS position information, and the like of members serving as conference room participants connected to each conference room are displayed. In FIG. 6, a member 3000 is displayed for each conference room. However, if another member is connected to each conference room, additional display is performed for each conference room.
The commander can move the member 3000 to another conference room A or another conference room B by dragging and dropping the photograph portion 60 of the member 3000 on the conference room monitor screen.
[0031]
The operator button 61 indicates a state in which the operator has entered the room. The operator can talk only with members entering (connected) to the conference room. Further, when the operator button 61 is highlighted as the operator button 61 ', it indicates that the operator has left the room.
The speaker button 62 indicates that the conversation in the conference room is being output from the speaker 26. Speaker output of all conference rooms can also be made. Further, when the speaker button 62 is highlighted as in the speaker button 62 ′, it indicates that the conversation in the conference room is not being output from the speaker 26.
[0032]
On the other hand, when the automatic response button 71 is selected instead of the manual response button 41 (step S302; N), the control unit displays a line connection status screen as shown in FIG. Even if the automatic response button 71 has been selected in advance, the control unit determines that the member 3000 is receiving an incoming call on the first line based on the conference room application 221 as shown in FIG. The name of the called party (member 3000) is displayed in the room participant box 42. The control unit changes the display of the line connection status box 43 from “standby” (see FIG. 7A) to “incoming”.
[0033]
Further, the control unit automatically connects the line of the portable information terminal 2a arrived at the staff member 3000 to the conference room A according to the conference room application 221 (step 304). At this time, based on the conference room application 221, the control unit changes the display of the line connection status box 43 from "receiving" (see FIG. 7 (b)) to "active" as shown in FIG. 7 (c). Change.
After the end of the call, when the commander selects the line disconnection button 48, the control unit disconnects the line connection of the member 3000 (step S305).
[0034]
When the automatic response button 71 is selected, the control unit connects the incoming member to a preset conference room. In this automatic response mode, it is assumed that the setting of the conference room to which the member is to be connected has been previously selected and determined by the instructor by the conference room application 221.
In addition, when the manual answer button 41 is selected during “receiving a call” or “during a call”, the commander can also move the member 3000 from the automatically connected conference room A to another conference room.
[0035]
When making a call to the predetermined portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,..., The commander selects the conference room participant box 42 and selects the line connection button 49 on the line connection status screen of FIG. I do. When the line connection button 49 is selected, the control unit makes a call to the member displayed in the conference room participant box 42 based on the conference room application 221.
When a call is made to a predetermined portable information terminal 2a, 2b, 2c,... From the line connection status screen, the portable information terminal to be called is selected and designated in the conference room selection box 44. It is designed to enter a conference room.
[0036]
Next, redial and transmission / reception history will be described.
When the instructor selects the transmission / reception history button 80 on the line connection status screen of FIG. 4, the control unit displays a transmission / reception history screen as shown in FIG.
On the outgoing / incoming call history screen, an outgoing call history tag 81 and an incoming call history tag 82 are displayed, and the commander can refer to the outgoing call history or incoming call history by selecting each of the tags 81 and 82. Has become. FIG. 8 shows, as an example, a case where the transmission history tag 81 is selected.
[0037]
The outgoing call history list displays the outgoing date, the outgoing time, the name of the called party, and the like. The outgoing call history list displays up to 30 outgoing call histories in descending order from the top, and histories of the same destination automatically update an old history to the latest history.
When the commander selects the incoming call history tag 82, the control unit displays the incoming call history list on the image display unit 21. Like the outgoing call history list, the incoming call history list displays up to 30 incoming call histories in descending order.
[0038]
In addition, the instructor can also use the transmission history list or the reception history list to perform a transmission operation to members.
For example, when the commander selects and clicks on member 3000 from the transmission history list, member 3000 is displayed in conference room participant box 42. Thereafter, when the member 3000 is designated and the line connection button 49 is selected, the caller can make a call to the member 3000.
The incoming / outgoing call history is created by the conference room application 221 when an incoming or outgoing call is accepted.
[0039]
When the commander selects the broadcast button 401 on the line connection status screen of FIG. 4, all members displayed in the conference room participant box 42 are gathered in a predetermined conference room. . It is assumed that, when the broadcast button 401 is selected, to which conference room all members are to be moved is set in advance by the commander. At this time, the operator also automatically enters a predetermined conference room.
[0040]
4 to 8, the case where the portable information terminal 2a of the member 3000 is connected to the predetermined conference room has been described, but the same processing procedure is performed even when the number of members increases. .
When all eight members are divided into predetermined conference rooms and connected, the line connection status screen is as shown in FIG. As shown in the line connection status screen of FIG. 9, when all eight lines are connected to the portable information terminals 2a, 2b, 2c,... The unit disconnects all eight lines.
[0041]
According to the line connection device according to the present embodiment, based on the combination selected by the combination selection unit, there is provided the connection unit that performs the line connection of the plurality of portable information terminals received by the connection reception unit. The user of the information terminal can be assigned to an arbitrary combination. For example, when a fire brigade or the like is used, the commander can efficiently give instructions to predetermined members.
Further, according to the line connection device according to the present embodiment, the combination selection by the combination selection means can be arbitrarily set, so that the line combination can be selected, for example, manually or automatically. You can talk not only with the selected combination of people, but also with another combination of people.
[0042]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to said Embodiment.
For example, in the present embodiment, the number of portable information terminals is eight (the number of members is eight), and two OD trunk boards are mounted on the line connection control unit 23. It is not something that can be done. It is also possible to appropriately increase the number of OD trunk boards to be mounted according to the number of portable information terminals requesting a line connection.
[0043]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the line connection control device of the present invention, the connection unit performs the line connection of the plurality of portable information terminals received by the connection reception unit based on the combination selected by the combination selection unit. The user of the connected portable information terminal can, for example, talk with a person in a predetermined conference room selected as a combination.
Further, according to the line connection control device of the present invention, the combination selection by the combination selection means can be arbitrarily set, so that by manually or automatically selecting the line combination, for example, the person in the designated conference room can be selected. And not only can I talk to various people.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a line connection system using a line connection control device of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a PC terminal provided with a line connection control board.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a line connection processing procedure in the PC terminal.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a line connection status screen in the case of a manual response.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an incoming call screen.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a conference room monitor screen.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a line connection status screen in the case of an automatic response.
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a line connection status screen on which a call history is displayed.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a line connection status screen in the case of all disconnection.
[Explanation of symbols]
1a, 1b, 1c, ... CS
2a, 2b, 2c, ... portable information terminal
10 Line controller
20 PC terminal
21 Image display section
22 Memory
23 Line connection control board
26 speaker
27 Headset
221 Conference Room Application
222 Phonebook Application
223 OS
231,232 OD trunk board
233 mixing unit
234 I / O board

Claims (2)

A line connection control device that manages a line connection from a plurality of portable information terminals to a predetermined number,
Connection receiving means for receiving a line connection request from the plurality of portable information terminals,
Combination selecting means for selecting a combination of line connections of the plurality of portable information terminals,
Based on the combination selected by the combination selecting means, connecting means for performing line connection of the plurality of portable information terminals received by the connection receiving means,
A line connection control device comprising: 2. The line connection control device according to claim 1, wherein the combination selection by the combination selection means can be arbitrarily set.

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